How to start a home care business in Australia

The demand for homecare services is growing in Australia. Many aging Aussies, those living with disabilities, and those with chronic illnesses are seeking home care providers to help them live safely and comfortably in their homes. Now may be the right time to launch your home care startup.

This quick guide will help you understand how to become a home care provider, including setting up your private home care business, finding insurance, and handling patient privacy.

Setting up your business

There are a few steps you need to complete to run a business in Australia:

• Choose a business structure (sole trader, partnership, or company)
• Register your business with ASIC and receive an ABN (Australian Business Number) or ACN (Australian Company Number)
• Register your business name and register it as a trademark (optional)

Working in healthcare

Depending on the services your home care startup will be providing, you may need special licenses or security checks to legally work in Australia.

• Selling therapeutic goods – If you will be selling health and medical goods to patients, you will need to register with the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA). The TGA sets rules and guidelines for how these products can be advertised and sold. It’s important to understand your obligations and stay up-to-date with changes to the law.
• Police Check – Approved aged care providers and home care providers may need to request a police check, including sole traders or anyone working directly with patients. Police checks help you decide if someone is trustworthy enough to work in your business.
• Working with Children Check – A Working with Children Check is mandatory if you or your employees will be providing care to patients under the age of 18. These checks last up to five years and may need to be rerun when they expire.

Becoming an NDIS provider

Many home care providers also become NDIS providers. The NDIS (short for the National Disability Insurance Scheme) provides practical support for Australians with disabilities, their families, and carers.

Becoming an NDIS business can bring you new clients, but it also comes with great responsibility. You will need to follow requirements set by the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission and the Australian Consumer Law.

Protecting your private home care business

You put a lot of time and effort into building your home care startup. Business insurance is one way to help protect it and shield your finances against the cost of many unexpected events.

Home care providers often consider different types of insurance, including:

Professional Indemnity – Protects you against losses claimed by a third party due to alleged or actual negligence in your professional services or advice. Working closely with patients leaves you vulnerable to malpractice claims. Even if you are not at fault, handling these claims can quickly become expensive.

Public Liability – This covers legal fees and compensation costs if a customer, member of the public, or a supplier claims against you for injury or damage to their property as a result of your alleged negligent business activity. Accidents happen, but if they cause an injury or property damage, setting things right could get expensive for your business.

Business Insurance – Business Insurance is an insurance package designed to provide cover for your business contents, stock, tools and commercial premises when an insured event occurs (such as fire, storm, theft or even accidental damage). A Business Insurance package can also cover your portable equipment, glass and for loss of revenue due to business interruption in specified circumstances. In addition, cover is available for public liability, tax audit, employment practices and statutory liability risks.

Cyber Liability – Covers losses from claims arising from data breaches, business interruption and remediation costs following an actual or threatened data breach. Home care providers often collect sensitive data about their patients. Getting your business back to work after a breach and notifying patients can be expensive.

Business insurance can create a vital safety net for home care providers and NDIS businesses. It is one way to help manage common risks that your business is likely to face. Without it, you could find yourself thousands of dollars out of pocket when things go wrong and may be forced to close your business in a worst-case scenario.

Handling patient privacy

Businesses that collect and handle personal information are held to a higher standard in Australia. Data privacy, particularly for healthcare providers, is taken very seriously. You will need to have a health service provider privacy policy in accordance with the Privacy Act 1988.

BizCover understands home care providers

Launching a home care startup is hard work, but buying insurance to protect it doesn’t have to be. BizCover makes it easy for busy home care providers to get quotes, compare cover, and get protected.

In as little as 10 minutes, you can buy instant cover online or over the phone for your private home care business. We only work with selected leading Australian insurers, so you can rest easy with cover that’s designed for home care providers from trusted insurance partners.

Ready to protect your home care business? Compare quotes and save today with BizCover!